The One for All League

[luckymann]

I always take my time moving saves to a new version and this one is no exception. I'll be moving the AtHoL, as well as the Footnote and Eclipse Leagues, across at the end of their current seasons, but the others will stay put for now.

Still, I'm eager to familiarise myself with 23 and am going to take this opportunity to do a fun little manually-created Random Debut save I'm calling the One for All League.

What I have done is this:

• Combined the MLB Master and MiLB Master databases
• Removed all players with limited ID functionality IE "Ballplayer" and those with only an initial for a first name, as I think they just funk up the joint
• Started a historical game using the 2015 MLB structure but set in 1901 and using 1961 LTMs all the way through, with financials starting in that year as well but progressing

I'll be manually importing the Draft Pools, starting with a 100-Rounder as the Inaugural Draft. There will be just the MLB and a AAA level for 1901, with AA and A levels being added in 1902 and 1903.

It's just meant to be a bit of fun, with my main focus being on unknown players who "pop" unexpectedly, and of course my beloved NeLers. With so much already on my plate, there won't be too much in-depth analysis, and I'll just be zooming along as time permits and whenever I need a bit of a break from the labour-intensity of my other projects.

5-year recalc with double-weights is being used, with development ON. TCR at 25. Player fatigue HIGH (something I've wanted to see the effect of for a while now). Short-term injuries NORMAL, long-term LOW. 25/25/25/25 for AI eval settings.

DH for both AL and NL with the Ohtani rule ON but the other nonsense like ghost runners and ties OFF. 3 option years max with 8 options per year, 5 years to FA with Arb after 2.

Using the 2015 schedule so some IL play. Players retire as per history. Pitcher stamina based on entire career. 26 on Active roster with a 40-man activated and playoff rules ON.

No logs or FGs or that sort of stuff in an effort to keep the file size under control.

I think that's it. Feel free to ask any questions along the way.

G

[luckymann]

FIRST ROUNDERS

Pete Hill went 1st overall, to the Marlins

After that thinks got veird...

• 1920s catcher Pete Lapan and all of his 0.3 career WAR went third, to the Baby Bears
• Richard Dandridge - who had the grand total of 12 AB in the NeL - went 5th, to the Rangers
• 19th-c OF Count Campau and his extra flash 'tash went 8th, to the Jays
• Leon Ballard - who played 100-odd games in the depths of the Negro minor leagues - went 10th, to the White Sox

I could go on, but won't - suffice to say it was the most bizarre R1 I've ever seen, until a few recognisable names started popping up, including Hack Miller and Al Simmons.


LOWER ROUNDS

Some of these names being selected where they were puts that first round in an even more eerie light.

• Harmon Killebrew: R2, Pick 8
• Buddy Myer: R2, Pick 17 (although it was to the Nats at least)
• Mike Schmidt: R3, Pick 23
• Eric Karros: R3, Pick 26
• Chris Carpenter: R 4, Pick 8
• Shane Bieber: R4, Pick 13
• Max Muncy: R5, Pick 4 (still in LA, but with the Halos)
• Kirby Puckett: R5, Pick 7
• Juanelo Mirabal: R15, Pick 6
• Brandon Lowe: R16, Pick 6

So, who wore it best?

Here are the predictions for 1901, along with the Top Players and prospects.

[luckymann]

By Ernie White of the Halos against the Rangers. He never threw one IRL.

[luckymann]

No-Hitters

• Ernie White, Angels v Rangers
• Jose Nunez, Mariners v Rangers
• Steven Duckhorn, Royals v Twins

Awards





Note, Bentley and Killebrew also won the RoYs.


Top 20s by WAR





Sylvester Heitzman

Played at the minor league level - mainly in the Three-I League - during the 1920s, with 1927 being his best season, going 18-8 / 2.60 for the Danville Veterans.


Paul Bentley

A shooting star through the low minors in the mid-50s, where he showed plenty of pop (49 HR) over two seasons.


TBH I can't even figure out which Jose Nunez it is in this save - he's showing only MiLB stats and BBRef has no corresponding player. Will keep trying to get to the bottom of this. His historical minors ID is nunez-010jos. EDIT figured it out - it is this Jose Nunez

[luckymann]

No hijinks this time around, as the bigger names go high up. Keston Hiura is taken first overall by the Blue Jays. Here's the entire 1st Round:



Tyler Johnson is the lucky last, pick #750 by the Marlins.

[luckymann]

So the effect here will be, with 25 Draft rounds per year, that players will begin to settle at their appropriate levels for the most part. But, seeing as the quality is watered down a bit, some room will be left for the guys who were maybe on the fringe IRL to make it happen here. That's what I'll be on the search for as we progress. There'll be more of them early before this settling process has taken full effect, and I'll be ignoring most of these unless their performance is too good to let pass or sustained over a number of seasons.

Here are 1902's top-ranked players and prospects:






Just a reminder, the AA level has been added for this season, with A to come in '03.

[luckymann]

The Rockies and Padres needed a tiebreaker to decide the NL WC2 slot.


No-Hitters

• Bruce Cunningham, Dodgers v Angels

Other Feats of Note

• Cycles: Joseph Macke, Phillip Arp, Arnold Hallgren
• 6-hit Games: Steve Korcheck, Tyler Wade

Awards







Top 20s by WAR





Tyler Wade

A nice bit of serendipity that he has his big game, seeing as he just had one IRL a day or so ago. Or did I imagine it / am I mixing him up with someone else? Who knows with this rusty steel-trap mind of mine...

Jabbo Andrews

An NeLer through the 1930s and '40s, Herman "Jabbo" Andrews pitched a total of 16.2 career innings according to SH. Somehow the game has translated that into Ohtani-like two-way skills, as his performance here attests. 5.1 bWAR. 6.0 pWAR. NL MVP / RoY. Nice going, champ.

Al Carson

Another NeL shooting star, SH has him pitching just 7 innings in 1913, then VOOM. Off to places unknown. Here, he goes 19-8 and collects 8.8 pWAR, the most in the majors.

Matt Krimmel

Played a single year (2002) for Billings in the Pioneer League, hitting a tonne but then never heard from again. Will the same fate befall him here? Apparently not, seeing as this was in fact his sophomore season in the OFA and his ratings have held up OK after the 1902 recalc.

[luckymann]

Scott Rolen goes 1st overall. I thought for a second Mike Trout had gone in the 3rd Round. Turns out it was Mike Trost, a catcher from the 1890s...

Here's the full R1:



BTW, that is the NeL's Sam Crawford at 19th overall, not Wahoo's favourite son.

Lucky last this year is Jacob Cook, whom one can only presume will begin his OFA career at Oakland's O'Hara Township Black Wolves in the newly-formed A-Level League. G'luck!

I've also noticed some unexpected retirements that aren't in line with the players' IRL exits. Charlie Parsons for example, has retired at age 22 after just one season in which he did OK for the Cubs, going 10-7 / 2.88, as opposed to playing in the bigs in 1886, at AA in '87 and then back to the Show for '90. Same goes with Carney Flynn at just 21 and, above all, Walter Thornton, who had amassed 17 WAR in two seasons as a two-way player and played four years in the bigs. Not a huge deal and probably just randomly chosen but still I'll keep an eye on this moving forward.

[luckymann]

Not sure if it is reflective of the respective quality of each group currently in the player pool, but the AI seems keener to deploy pitchers into the bigs earlier than position players. For example, #1 prospect Scott Rolen is 20 and starting at AA, while age-19 #2 Doc Halladay opens the season at the Cards, albeit in their BP rather than as an SP. In fact, age-24 Candy LaChance (#15) is the highest-ranked non-pitcher playing for the parent club on OD.

This year's breakout star, according to BNN, will be Dodgers OF Maurice Colona, a D-Ball player from the 1930s who they think will belt 60 HR and knock in 147. The mysterious Leon Ballard is expected to post another good year as well. he is currently second all-time with 66 HR; only Colorado's Arthur Riggs (68) has more.

Top players and prospects for the '03 campaign are as follows. Interesting to see Charles Dugan still being ranked, given he suffered a career-ending UCL tear back in 1901. For some reason he hasn't been retired yet. Maybe he's set for the miracle Roy Hobbs comeback! It's also a bit strange that guys who haven't even been drafted yet - EG Clarence (C.B.) Griffin - being ranked.





All MiLB levels are now in place.

[luckymann]

No-Hitters

• Mike Mattimore, Orioles v Red Sox

Other Feats of Note

• Cycles: Al Simmons, Dan Uggla
• 6-hit Games: James Cooper
• 50+ HR Seasons: James White (56), Lawrence Hoffman (52)
• 150+ RBI Seasons: James White (163)

Awards







Top 20s by WAR





MVPs this season are both two-way players and both NeLers, with Jabbo Andrews making it two in a row.

Walter Davis is - to NeL aficionados at least - better known by the appellation "Steel Arm". He was a fine player in the 1920s and '30s, though (despite the nickname) known more for his efforts at the plate than on the mound.

BNN did OK with their call on Colona, who belted 49 HR and drove in 122 runs. He was, however, outshone in the power game by a couple others.

James White, who set new OFA records with 56 dingers and 163 ribbies, played a single season (1954) for a couple teams in the low minors, with BBRef's incomplete stats saying he hit just 239 with 5 HR.

Lawrence Hoffman is an even more random one. He went a career 1-for-9 playing for Marion in the 1954 Buckeye League, but managed to mash 52 taters in the OFA. I love this stuff.

Aubry Owens, who had a dominant year to win the NL CYA, played his entire NeL career for the Chicago American Giants. That career spanned 1922 thru 1925 and netted him a 19-17 record with a 4.48 ERA. Despite a late injury curtailing his season, he managed to eclipse that IRL total by one by going 20-7.

Zach Borenstein is another worth noting. A career minor-leaguer last seen playing in Mexico, Zach transcended some fairly middling ratings to put together a fine 6.1 WAR season in Yankee Pinstripes. He's been handy since being drafted in 1901, slashing 332/384/602 with 74 HR and 281 RBI.

[luckymann]

Tony Phillips is drafted 1st overall by the Bucs, with Keith Hernandez next and JT Realmuto after him.




This year's Lucky Last (LL) - the 760th overall pick - is Ivor Swanson, who looks like he'll commence his OFA career at the AAA Centreville Paints, part of the Guardians organization. Amazingly, last year's LL Jacob Cook made it all the way to the bigs - pitching oh so briefly for both the White Sox (2 scoreless IP!!) and Cards (we won't talk about that one...) in between being claimed off waivers no fewer than 17 times. I reckon he'd say it was worth it. He is currently at the Astros' AAA club in Chula Vista.

Mike Mattimore obviously felt he'd climbed the mountaintop with last season's no-no for the O's and decided to leave the game while on top. Zaza Harvey, who was a star in my Bucs save but whom I hadn't even noticed among the OFA ranks, is another to retire, having only made it as an RP for a CoC here.

[luckymann]

Some truly fascinating names among those top-ranked position players: nothing from #6 Robert Pierce, # 14 Orv Mohler or #16 Carl Mutert's IRL adventures give rise to them being there. In Mohler's case I think it is a simple case of misentered data as he played for LA in the AA PCL but his game stats show him as having played in the bigs.

BNN is predicting big things for Ballard and Colona again, but this year's breakout star for them will be Harry Taylor, who barely made a ripple in a brief stay in the game in the early part of last century, but is predicted to belt what would be a new record 57 HR this season for the Brew Crew.

Will be keeping an eye on them.

[LansdowneSt]

So, what are third-overall pick and 1901 4th best hitter in the league's career stats to-date? I now have to know...

[luckymann]

Originally Posted by LansdowneSt

So, what are third-overall pick and 1901 4th best hitter in the league's career stats to-date? I now have to know...

You may jest my friend, but would you believe I have these shorties set up to track First and Last picks, but sadly not 3rd overall. Knowing me as you do, I doubt it would surprise you...

1st Overalls




Lucky Lasts



EDIT: The bug still seems to be affecting this, as it is only showing the most recent season's WAR for the player rather than his career...


As for 1901's 4th-best hitter? Well, by WAR that was Phillies' 1B Tim Thompson. Et, voila...




Cheeky bugger...

[LansdowneSt]

‘Twas Pete Lapan of whom I spoke. As per the draft log and preseason best hitter ranking those were his auspicious accolades. Did he live up to them?

[luckymann]

Originally Posted by LansdowneSt

‘Twas Pete Lapan of whom I spoke. As per the draft log and preseason best hitter ranking those were his auspicious accolades. Did he live up to them?

Ahhhh. My bad.

Here is Pete in all his unfettered glory. It seems he may have peaked and is on the fast train to Regressionville as we speak...

[luckymann]

No-Hitters

NIL


Other Feats of Note

• Cycles: Enos Slaughter, Dee Moore, Willie Lozado, Fabian Gaffke, Pepper Martin
• 50+ HR Seasons: Harmon Killebrew (59), Harry Taylor (51), Lawrence Hoffman (50), Paul Bentley (50)
• 150+ RBI Seasons: Harmon Killebrew (165)

Awards







Top 20s by WAR





So it wasn't Harry Taylor but a rather more familiar name in Harmon Killebrew who wrote his name in the record books with new marks of 59 HR and 165 RBI. All the same, Taylor's RoY-winning season wasn't too shabby with 51 / 127.

John Shannahan, who led the AL with a new record of 270 K, has come out of nowhere. IRL he played just the single season (1949) for the Cairo Dodgers in the KITTY League, fanning a far more modest 98 in 170 IP.

Lawrence Hoffman continued to outperform his IRL output, mashing 50 taters again. As for those three highly-rated unknowns are concerned, Robert Pierce had another solid year that netted him 4.2 bWAR and a league-leading 440 OBP, Orv Mohler managed to amass 4.6 bWAR despite his season being ended early by an injury, and Carl Mutert matched that total for the Giants.

Jesse Vann put together a sweet little 5.6 bWAR season for a bloke who never made it past A-Ball IRL.

Same goes for George Quinn, who parlayed a 4-season career at B-Ball into a lovely 7.3 pWAR rookie year for the Marlins.

These guys notwithstanding, there's no doubt the cream is slowly but surely rising to the top.


NB. Didn't like some of the stuff I was seeing on 25/25/25/25, so I've changed AI eval to 45/27/18/10 for now.

[luckymann]

Some real quality here, with Mookie Betts drafted first overall by the Reds, followed by Buster Posey and Jorge Posada. NeL legend Jud Wilson is here along with handy catcher Goose Curry, who the O's took 6th overall.




Don Aase down in R4 looks a nice pickup for the Mets. Bernie Williams from the 1970s also went down there, not the more famous Yankee from a couple decades later.

I also noticed that an age-19 Ozzie Albies has imported under his full name of Ozhaino as an MiLB version drafted by the Jints in R3, so it'll be interesting to see if the MLB version comes along later to give us a direct comparison.

Lucky Last this year is Carlos Garcia, a DR bust for the Padres from the early 2000s who made it as far as the AZL, but no further.

[luckymann]

A few points of note from the OD reports.

Richard Zona was a surprise packet last season for the A's and is expected to do well again this season. IRL he played just one year in 1957 for Graceville of the AL-FL league; here he's a bit of a gun.

Jack Lauder played for Peoria of the Triple-I League in 1906 then vanished. He was a R3 pick for the Phillies here and BNN are expecting him to shine in his rookie year with 50+ dingers.

John(ny) Honig seems to have benefitted from some erroneous data giving him one great season in the bigs in 1919, when in fact he spent that year playing for Baltimore in the IL, which was AA-level. That would explain his lofty place on the prospects list.

The ubiquitous high expectations for Señor Colona and Mr Ballard are in place again. One name notably absent from the Preseason Predictions is Harmon Killebrew. Wonder what's up with that?

[luckymann]

The A’s win their last 7 as the Mariners lose their last 7 and the A’s eventually take the AL West by 2. The M’s then get beaten by the Yanks in a tiebreaker for the AL WC2 slot.


Awards







Top 20s by WAR





Feats of Note

• No-Hitters: Clarence Fisher, Chris Carpenter
• Cycles: Rusty Saunders, Nap Kloza, Paul Bentley
• 50+ HR Seasons: Maurice Colona (66), Leon Ballard (56), Harmon Killebrew (52), Harry Taylor (50)
• 150+ RBI Seasons: Maurice Colona (171), Leon Ballard (153)
• Art Fromme has his fourth straight 14-win season.

Well the folks at BNN sure earned their shekels this year, as Maurice Colona goes berserker with 66 HR and 171 RBI, both new records, Leon Ballard has 56 / 153 and Harry Taylor belts 50 HR despite a premature end to his season. Orv Mohler also lives up to the hype, slashing 334/383/616 with 46 HR and 142 RBI, good for just under 8 bWAR.


One name to pop up during my wanderings is Don Allegrucci, the current OFA leader in doubles with 219, as opposed to his 1950s D-Ball career total of 13 over two seasons.

Finally - and this is undoubtedly a bug - I've not seen this before, with Goose Curry's POT less than his OVR...